The Invasive Species
Wroclaw, Poland
Curated by
Dominika Drozdowska, Marzena Krzemińska-Baluch, Joanna Stembalska
SIC! BWA Wrocław Gallery invites you to the exhibition summing up the artistic residency of the American artist Ben Wright, who uses the grotesque and irony to raise important issues of the relationship between humans and the world.
Although the Polish version of title of the latest exhibition at the SIC! Gallery, Invasive Species, takes plural form, perhaps it would be the more accurate to put it in singular. After all, the most expansive creature that poses the greatest threat to the environment is human being. Today, humans and their "breeding and accompanying stock" account for 96% of the mammal population. We domesticate and subordinate a significant part of life on Earth to our own needs, which are often not a real necessity of our existence, but a manifestation of our whims and recklessness. One example of this can be the inconspicuous rabbit, which was brought to Australia in 1895 only for entertainment (hunting), and consequently caused a significant ecological disaster: the fast growth of its population resulted in the destruction of local vegetation, and thus in the erosion of soil. It took more than 100 years for Australia to cope with this disaster – in 1996 the problem of the plague was solved, but we do not know to what extent the ecosystem has been restored.
The territorial expansiveness of humans resembles that of rabbits. Their mobility and rapid economic development have turned them into an invasive species, killing biodiversity and disturbing the harmonious distribution of beings. Don't be fooled, however – say the exhibition curators Dominika Drozdowska, Marzena Krzemińska-Baluch and Joanna Stembalska. It is not only us humans who are an invasive species. Our companion pet, a cat, is one as well. Besides, you will see for yourself how Ben Wright addresses these issues. In September, the American artist and biologist undertook a residency organised as part of the collaboration between BWA Wrocław and the Academy of Fine Arts in Wrocław, and now he has created an exhibition at the SIC! BWA Wrocław Gallery. However, the mere consideration and defining human being as an "invasive species" is not enough for him. What more can an artist do besides transforming the distorted image of the contemporary world into their own artistic statement? – ask the exhibition curators. They may strive for synthesis, but they cannot do without the grotesque or at least a shadow of irony. This is what constitutes the creative power of Ben Wright and his aesthetic eclecticism .
The exhibition will give us an opportunity to take a closer look at Ben Wright's format of work called Vivisection. It is an overloaded site specific installation, composed of various media: glass, paper collages, photographs, videos, objects and sculptures. I think artists often portray their ideas as finished, polished objects – says Ben Wright. I'm much more interested in the halfway point, where you present an idea to the audience or present something that triggers ideas.
